When No One Else Was Looking
by Ninnani
Summary: Merida finds Hiccup, asleep, spread eagle in the center of the stone circle. For Mericcup Week '14


**I wrote this for Mericcup Week over on tumblr. The prompt was 'You Found Me' by Kelly Clarkson**

**Reviews feed the author!**

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Merida finds Hiccup spread eagle in the center of the stone circle, eyes closed, sun warming his face. His cheeks are flushed from the heat, and he might have been sleeping if it wasn't for the frown that set his features.

To his right, Toothless lounges on the fallen stone, sunlight dancing off his scales. He's rolling around against the rock, shedding scales and basking in the afternoon sunlight. His saddle lays discarded in the grass beside him. When he hears her enter the clearing, the Night Fury perks up, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he bounds towards her.

Angus whinnies at his advance, but he's not intimidated by the sight of the dragon any more. Instead he tosses his head in greeting as Merida slides off his back. Toothless gives the Clydesdale a respectful snort in return before turning his attention to the princess.

She laughs when he licks the entire right side of her face with one swipe of his tongue, "Hello, Toothless. I brought you something." She unties a basket from Angus' saddle and sets it in front of the Fury, opening the flap and letting the fish spill onto the ground. "I swiped some Salmon from the kitchens. I hope you're hungry."

Toothless makes a happy noise in the back of his throat as he buries his head into the basket of fish. Merida laughs and pats him on the head as she makes her way into the clearing, "Don't eat them all at once, you greedy little devil."

When she reaches him she casts a shadow over his face and she nudges him gently in the head with her foot, "Were you planning on telling me that you were here _before_ or after you left?"

He opens his eyes and smiles up at her. It doesn't quite reach his eyes, but he's happy to see her. "Before, definitely."

Merida snorts and rolls her eyes, dropping to the ground and crossing her legs.

"How did you find me?" He arches his neck to look up at her.

"The wisps led me," She winks at him and his smile widens slightly before faltering.

He rests back on the grass, his expression falling again, "I'm sorry, Mer. I was going to come, but I just... needed a minute."

Merida frowns at him and leans on her side, spreading her legs out behind her, "What happened?"

She brushes back his fringe with the tips of her fingers and he closes his eyes at the feel of them ghosting over his skin. "I talked to my dad again today."

Her fingers pause, "What did he say?"

Hiccup sighs, "Nothing. He wouldn't let me talk. The minute I got downstairs this morning he goes, son," He adopts his father's deep, gravely voice, shaking a finger at the sky, "we need to talk. You're the pride of Berk, a hero of the Hooligan tribe, and I couldn't be prouder. But it's time we talked about your future as Chief."

Merida laughs, "Oh, that was good. Let me try." She clears her throat and sits up, puffing out her chest dramatically only to let out a high pitched, nasally whine that startles Toothless out from the bag of fish, half eaten salmon hanging out of his mouth, "But Dad! I don't want to be Chief of Berk. I want to be a dragon!" She spreads her arms wide and falls backwards, "I want to sprout wings and fly across the world with Toothless until we fall off the edge! I want this because dragons and freedom and dragons!"

She looks up at him, grinning, but he just stares at her, "Was that supposed to be me?"

She nods, biting her lip and looking pleased with herself.

"I do not sound like that."

"You do a little bit."

"And I don't want to be a dragon."

She lets out a giggle, "Yes you do."

"Oh, that's it." He grins at her, "I'll show you Hiccup the dragon," He roars playfully and dives at her.

Merida squeals and rolls out of the way, scrambling to her feet and he follows after her.

"You've woken Hiccup the dragon, Merida! What have you done?" He chases her around the clearing, their laughter ringing together in the summer air, "Toothless help me get her."

Toothless, who had been watching them from the tree line, eagerly glides into their chase. Pink tongue hanging free, he lands in front of Merida with a playful growl, spreading his wings wide and forcing her to stop short.

She tries to change direction but Hiccup is right behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her to the ground with him.

He rolls them so that his arms are on either side of her, caging her underneath him, "Gotcha."

She's laughing and breathing hard, eyes shining, cheeks flushed, red curls spread around her head like a veil of flames. She places a hand on his cheek.

"Oh no," her voice is soft and breathless, "I've been caught by Hiccup the Dragon Chief. What am I going to do?"

His face falls and he groans, burying his head into her shoulder and wrapping his arms around her. "I'm not ready for this Chief thing, Merida."

"Oh, don't be so dramatic. Of course you are." She rolls her eyes, running her fingers through his hair.

"No," his voice is muffled by the fabric of her dress, "I'm really not."

She heaves a sigh and sits up, taking her hands out of his hair and forcing him to sit up. She fixes him with a withering look that so reminiscent of her mother that Hiccup has to do a double take,

"Hiccup. Who was the first Viking to ride a dragon?"

He frowns at her, "I was, but what-"

"And who defeated the Red Death?"

"Me, but I didn't-"

"And who single handedly ended the war between dragons and Vikings?"

"Hey, I didn't do it single handedly. I did it single footed-ly." He laughs at his own joke, but Toothless wackes him in the head with his tale, knocking him over, "Ow. I mean, Toothless helped a little."

"Of course Toothless helped," She cooes, reaching up to scratch the Night Fury under his chin, "I was getting to that part."

Toothless purrs appreciatively and Hiccup glares at him. "Traitor."

Merida looks at him, "Hiccup, look at what you've done. Look at what you've accomplished." She gestures to his armor and Toothless' tail.

"Yeah, but it's different this time." He whines.

She raises an eyebrow, "How?"

"Well, for one, I don't have a Dragon Mother to defeat this time around."

"Very funny, but I'm being serious, you numpty." She raps his forehead with her knuckles, "If you don't want to be Chief, you don't have to be Chief. The decision is yours and yours only. Only you have the power to change your fate." Her blue eyes bore into his. She knows this better than any one. She learned it the hard way.

"We could fly away right now and never look back." She gives him a pointed look, "But I know you can do it," She pokes him in the chest, "You. Not Hiccup the Dragon Conquer, or Hiccup the Dragon Tamer. Not even Hiccup the Dragon Chief." She pokes him again, "You. Hiccup. Just Hiccup."

He stares at her, and for a moment they just sit there, letting her words wrap themselves around him like a second set of armor. Then he leans in and kisses her, tasting the words on her lips, soaking up the meaning through her skin. She kisses him back, pouring all her courage and her love into him, filling him up so he would never have to be without her.

"Thank you," he breaths when he pulls away, resting his forehead against hers.

"For what?" Her voice is breathless again, a quality it only adopts, he's notices with a smug satisfaction, when he's around.

"For finding me."


End file.
